ISKANDAR PUTERI: Johor has received more than RM14.2bil of committed investment within the first six months of this year, says state executive councillor Lee Ting Han.
The state investment, trade and consumer affairs committee chairman said the figure is based on statistics from the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida).
“Of that amount, some RM3.3bil (23.5%) is from the manufacturing sector while RM10.8bil (76.5%) is from the service sector. The total number of approved projects is 422, which will create 6,898 job opportunities," said Lee.
“Based on such investment trends, the government is optimistic and expects investments to continue to grow rapidly, and it will be reflected in the full statistics of 2023,” he added.
Lee said this in his winding-up speech at the state assembly meeting held at Bangunan Sultan Ismail in Kota Iskandar on Thursday (Nov 30).
He added that the state government is seriously considering green technology, with sustainable initiatives and global net zero carbon emissions by 2050 becoming mainstream trends.
Lee said such trends open an opportunity for Johor to provide feasible solutions to develop a low-carbon economy, including developing solar energy and related industries such as electric vehicles and hydrogen energy.
He added that the success of hosting the Asia Pacific Climate Week 2023, involving over 3,800 representatives from 108 countries, shows the state government’s commitment to this matter.
Lee said that the state expects more prospective investors to explore business opportunities in the green energy sector following the launch of the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR).
“Johor Sustainability Centre chairman Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad and I will be attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference or the 28th Conference of Parties in Dubai and would take this opportunity to attract investment in this sector," said Lee.
He added that the rapid growth of the global digital economy has enabled continuous and advanced development in new technologies and opened up various opportunities for the state.
Lee also said the digital economy is a New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP) 2030 focus sector.
He added that Johor has grown into the region's hub for data centres due to sufficient resources, a favourable environment, and a developed infrastructure.
“Invest Johor, as the state government's main agency in matters of investment, will continue to work with all agencies to offer the best services to realise the proposed projects,” he added.
